THE SURGICAL TECHNIQUE OF ANTERIOR CERVICAL FUSION USING BONE-GRAFTS OBTAINED FROM CERVICAL VERTEBRAL BODIES

The authors describe the surgical technique of anterior cervical fusio n using bone grafts obtained from cervical vertebral bodies. This seri es consisted of 90 patients with cervical intervertebral disc disease suffering from cervical spondylotic myelopathy. Thirty-five patients w ere operated on at one level, 33 at two levels, and 22 at three levels . Postoperative x-ray films showed solid bone fusion in all patients a t a mean follow-up time of 24 months (range 1 year to 3 years 6 months ). Anterior angulation was found in four (4.4%) of the 90 patients. Th is surgical procedure has two major advantages: 1) there are no compli cations related to the iliac donor site, allowing early patient mobili zation; and 2) the extensive posterior spur can be removed safely and easily under a wide operative field without damaging the spinal cord a nd nerve roots.